House prices increased by 3.2% in South Hams in March, new figures show.

The rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 6.4% over the last year.

The average South Hams house price in March was £413,943, Land Registry figures show – a 3.2% increase on February.

Over the month, the picture was different to that across the South West, where prices decreased 0.6%, and South Hams was above the 1.2% drop for the UK as a whole.

Over the last year, the average sale price of property in South Hams rose by £25,000 – putting the area 13th among the South West’s 26 local authorities with price data for annual growth.

The highest annual growth in the region was in Swindon, where property prices increased on average by 12.2%, to £279,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in Bath and North East Somerset gained 1.1% in value, giving an average price of £421,000.

First steps on the property ladder

First-time buyers in South Hams spent an average of £328,000 on their property – £19,000 more than a year ago, and £91,000 more than in March 2018.

By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £464,000 on average in March – 41.4% more than first-time buyers.

Property types

Owners of detached houses saw the biggest rise in property prices in South Hams in March – they increased 3.6%, to £625,226 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by 6.8%.

Among other types of property:

Semi-detached:
Terraced:
Flats:

How do property prices in South Hams compare?

Buyers paid 27% more than the average price in the South West (£326,000) in March for a property in South Hams. Across the South West, property prices are high compared to those across the UK, where the average cost £285,000.

The most expensive properties in the South West were in Cotswold – £511,000 on average, and 1.2 times as much as more than in South Hams. Cotswold properties cost 2.4 times as much as homes in Plymouth (£217,000 average), at the other end of the scale.

The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.

Factfile

Average property price in March

  • South Hams: £413,943
  • The South West:£326,035
  • UK: £285,009

Annual growth to March

  • South Hams: +6.4%
  • The South West: +5.4%
  • UK: +4.1%

Highest and lowest annual growth in the South West

  • Swindon: +12.2%
  • Bath and North East Somerset: +1.1%